Wellington greenspace flourishes thanks to Tree Canada grant

This summer, WSD planted nine new trees in the Wellington playground. The school has also been the fortunate recipient of a $3,000 Tree Canada grant, which has allowed staff to purchase and plant 60 new shrubs and four trees.

“All trees and shrubs are native Manitoba species that will be used for educating the students about the Boreal forest and will further our commitment to our ESD initiatives,” said Wellington Inquiry Teacher Neil Kolton. “Each shrub is also an edible berry bush, which will be used for cooking education for the students as well as producing homemade jams and jellies to donate to our breakfast and lunch programs.”

The grant was made possible by U-Haul, which partnered with Tree Canada to collect donations and provide its own support to tree planting initiatives.

“Since the beginning of our partnership in 2011, U-Haul and Tree Canada have planted over 81,000 trees across Canada,” said Tree Canada Community Advisor Ken Fosty, who visited the school on Oct. 15 to deliver the cheque. “These trees will provide multiple benefits including shade, shelter, aesthetic beauty, recreational benefits, educational benefits, wildlife habitat and clean air.”

Tree Canada's Ken Fosty, U-Haul Co. of Central Canada's Colton Hoffman and Ryan Pearson, and teacher Neil Kolton at Wellington School.

U-Haul sent staff to the school to help with the massive planting effort.

Wellington students also assisted with the planting project; trees and shrubs were planted over a two-week period that included an unseasonable fall snow storm.

“Last year, our schoolwide theme was trees. We studied how they helped the environment and all the ways they benefit us,” Mr. Kolton said. “Each class chose one native Manitoba shrub/berry bush to sponsor and plant themselves. We have blueberries, Saskatoons, Elderberries, honey berries, red and black currants and more. The students will be measuring and studying the plants as they grow, and they’ll also be watering and taking care of them. For years to come, those teachers and classes will be taking care of these trees.”

Mr. Kolton said the school chose to plant native Manitoba trees and shrubs because staff wanted to add to the school’s existing boreal forest in its various greenspaces.

“This is a way of getting to know what the boreal forest is all about, what is native to Manitoba and what grows really well here,” Mr. Kolton said. “Some students may not be aware that oranges aren’t grown here in Manitoba—so we wanted to show them some native varieties of trees and shrubs that do grow well here.”